Crime in the Northumbria Police area: statistics, rates and trends

Violence and sexual offences (43,045), anti-social behaviour (29,254) and shoplifting (18,508) made up 62% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 14th of the 41 police force areas covered by this site (1 = highest), in the upper half.

The year to August 2026 had the least recorded crime in the Northumbria Police area of any year here (146,228 crimes). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it fell 33%, while across England and Wales it fell 4%.

Month by month

Compared with England and Wales, the Northumbria Police area recorded notably more other crime (57% above the national rate), shoplifting (45% above the national rate) and criminal damage and arson (27% above the national rate), and notably less theft from the person (59% below) and drugs (44% below). On the year before, robbery rose from 1,514 to 1,881, while drugs fell from 4,944 to 2,775 and possession of weapons fell from 1,496 to 1,110.

What each category covers: crime categories.

136,332 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in the Northumbria Police area in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 90.3 per 1,000 residents, close to the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was down 1% on the year ending March 2025 (137,907), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 43 territorial police force areas of England and Wales, the Northumbria Police area had the 13th highest rate (the street-level ranking above is among the 41 force areas with street-level pages on this site, over the 12 months to August 2026).

Offences recorded in the Northumbria Police area, the year ending March 2026

The largest category was shoplifting, with 17,941 offences (13% of the total). Relative to England and Wales, rates were highest for arson (2.0 times the national rate), robbery of business property (1.8 times the national rate) and shoplifting (1.5 times the national rate). Rates were lowest relative to the national rate for theft from the person (0.34 times), robbery of personal property (0.64 times) and bicycle theft (0.73 times).

The largest rises on the year were in death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving (from 37 to 75) and rape (+11%). The largest falls were in bicycle theft (−20%) and vehicle offences (−13%). Robbery of business property and shoplifting are not compared with the year ending March 2025: from April 2025 the Home Office Counting Rules were clarified so that a theft from a shop in which violence is used or threatened against staff or anyone else is recorded as robbery of business property rather than shoplifting (ONS).

Recorded crime in the Northumbria Police area since the year ending March 2013

The chart shows police recorded crime per 1,000 residents in each year ending March from 2013 to 2026. The Northumbria Police area's rate was above the England and Wales rate in 10 of those 14 years and below it in 4. Changes in how forces record crime move these figures as well as changes in crime (methodology).

Districts in the Northumbria Police area, the year ending March 2026

Of the 6 districts in the Northumbria Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Newcastle upon Tyne had the highest rate (107.4 per 1,000) and Northumberland the lowest (69.3). 1.4% of the crimes recorded in the area that year were not assigned to a district, so the district figures add up to less than the force total.

Source: Home Office police recorded crime and outcomes open data tables (released 23 July 2026), gov.uk, Open Government Licence v3.0. Financial years, excluding fraud; how they differ from the street-level figures: methodology.

6 of the 8 nearest police force areas have a higher crime rate than the Northumbria Police area; the highest is the Cleveland Police area (156.6 per 1,000) and the lowest the North Yorkshire Police area (72.3).

Of the 6 areas within the Northumbria Police area, Newcastle upon Tyne had the highest crime rate (118.8 per 1,000) and Northumberland the lowest (78.0).

Of the 116,974 crimes in the Northumbria Police area with a recorded outcome, 40% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 0.9% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 29,254 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.

The Northumbria Police area has an estimated population of 1,509,809 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has more social housing (24%, against 17%) and more households without a car (29%, against 23%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up the Northumbria Police area average decile 4.7 (1 = most deprived), close to the middle.

Police-recorded crime from data.police.uk (September 2017 to August 2026), ONS population estimates and Census 2021. Definitions and limitations: methodology.